Improvement in hats or bonnets



(76d DAVID SQRYMGEOUR.

Hats or Bonnets.

No. !21,668. Patniednewwm.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

IMPROVEMENT IN HATS OR BONNETS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 121,668, dated December5, 1871.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, -DAvID SCRYMGEOUE, of Foxborough, in the county ofNorfolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Hats or Bonnets made in imitation of straw, Leghorn, orPanama, and in the process of making the same, of which the following'is a specification:

Hats and bonnets in imitation of straw, Leghorn, or Panama haveheretofore been made of paper struck up in dies, otl finished paper andcloth united, or of a textile fabric, such as buckram, covered withseveral coats of paint or composition, Which received the impress of thedies, by which the appearance of straw, Leghorn, or Panama was impartedto the exterior surface of the hat or bonnet-body.

The object of my invention is to obviate 0bjections which have arisen inthe existing manufacture of hat and bonnet-bodies of the kindsmentioned; and to this end I make an imitation straw, Leghorn, or Panamahat or body, of fabric and paper combined, in the manner which I shallnow proceed to describe in detail, in order to enable those skilled inthe art to understand and practice my invention.

I take a piece of light Woven fabric of any kind, preferably buckram,cotton-cloth, or muslin, of the size required for the hat or bonnet,saturate it with a preparationof starch or other sticky substance, andthen form it up With a buckram-press and die or other suitable means.When thus formed up it is removed from the press and put on a block,usually of plaster, which has the shape of the hat or bonnet. I preparea thin lm or thin sheet of paper-pulp, which is made on a Wire-gauzeform of the shape of the block. This film of pulp thus shaped, and Whilestill moist, I draw over the cloth on the plaster block, and the two arethen pressed closely together either by hand or with a press or machinedesigned for the purpose. The moisture in the pulp softens the starch orother sticky substance incorporated with the cloth, and the contiguoussurfaces of the tWo are thus closely and intimately united throughouttheir Whole eXtent. The hat or bonnet is now dried and taken off theblock; and I then prefer, in order to make it Water-proof, to give it acoat upon both outside and inside of any transparent varnish, such as amixture of ether and collodion, in order to render it Water-proof,although this coat may be omitted, if desired. The hat, When the varnishcoating is nearly dry, is put into the electrotype braid-die, which isheated, and pressure is applied so as to impart to the exterior surfaceof the hat a clear and clean impression of the braid formed in the die,which is taken readily and quickly bythe paper-film. After this the hatis ready to be shaped, lined, and Wired for the market.

In order to obtain any of the conventional colors for the hat, insteadof painting its exterior for this purpose, as is generally done, I dyethe pulp the shade desired previous to its being formed up, eitherblack, brown, buff, or strawcolor; by this method dispensing with thepaint, reducing the Weight of the hat, and obtaining uniform colorswhich will not fade. The hat may be stained after it is made; but I muchprefer the mode just specified of dyeing the pulp.

By putting the hat in the electrotype-die before the varnish is entirelydry an advantage is gained, as the hat Will take a better impressionWith a less amount ot pressure, and the impression is clearer and holdsbetter.

A hat or bonnet thus made is stronger, lighter, and more elastic thanothers made either of paper, of finished paper and cloth united, or ofcloth painted. lt is much less expensive than the cloth painted hats,presents a better appearance, and occupies less time in manufacture. Itis better than the combined cloth and finishedpaper hat, in that thepulp takes thel form of the article more readily, and admits of the hator bonnet being formed up in a single piece With an exterior smooth andunwrinkled, and therefore perfectly adapted to receive the requiredimpression in the electrotype-die.

For the better understanding of my invention I have represented in theaccompanying' drawing a hat made in accordance With my invention, aportion of the paper being broken away to show the cloth beneath. A isthe cloth-backing', and B the iilm of paper-pulp united therewith, andtreated to present the appearance external- 1y of a braided straw hat.

Having described my invention, and the manner in Whirh the sumo is ormuy be vmriml into l L. A hat or bonnot made of pnpmhpulp and Gvot, Iwould my, iu vom-lusion. that l lo not fabrilvomhimwl iu imitation ofsri-uu', Loghoru, limitmysvlt'iotlwprovisolvtuilslirrhiulvsrrilmllumimu, or similar goods, subsumtiull)v iu the in illustration ot' myiuvcutiou, urs th@l sumo muy 3 mumwr herein shown and described, as anew be Varied to somo cxtvlit; but l mzmuim'uro.

What 1 claim. uml elvsiro to swuro hy Lvttors In trstimouy whereof Ihave signed my name Patent, is to this` sporiirutiou boi'ore twosubscribing wit- 1. The provoss of muuul'uduring; hutsuml boul mossos.nets iu imitatlon ot' straw. Lcghoru, luuumzl, or similar goods frompalper-pulp mul iinhrio (fom- 'itiwsses:

DAVID SCRYMGEOUR.

EDM. F. BROWN, CHAs. B. NOTTINGHAM. (7G) billed, substantially in themanner herein set forth.

